For duchesses and Chinese businessmen, fine Cartier jewellery and expensive Jaeger-LeCoultre watches are still in fashion — helping Richemont report a sales surge for 2012.
The Cartier to Net-a-Porter owner said currency shifts also boosted revenues, with net profits likely to jump by between 20% and 40% for the six months to October.
The Geneva-based company said sales for the four months to August were up 24% on a reported basis and 13% on a constant currency basis.
Its previous cautious outlook has now been revised and analysts expect an 18% gain in operating profit for the first six months of its financial year.
Despite many luxury brands experiencing a slowdown in Asia, Richemont, which takes in the IWC and Piaget brands as well as Cartier, as worn by the Duchess of Cambridge, above, has been helped by Asian shoppers travelling to Europe and the US. But sales in Asia still account for half of group revenues.
Richemont shares climbed 7% in Zurich this morning.
Hong Kong-listed luxury brand Prada also reported a sales boost today, up 36.5% to €1.54 billion for the six months to August. It said Asia-Pacific jumped 45% while European sales grew 37.3%.
